


Juno Steel And The Obligatory Star Wars AU

by Cecil_G_P



Category: Star Wars, The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: 2 murderous 2 mask, JEDI AU, M/M, dum de dum dum singing a song singing the idk how to tag things song, murderous mask
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-16
Updated: 2017-06-19
Packaged: 2018-10-19 14:08:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10641462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cecil_G_P/pseuds/Cecil_G_P
Summary: Listen. I like the penumbra podcast. I like Star Wars. Here's two things in one. Sometime in the time where luke fucking skedaddled to his island but before the dealio with poe and rey. First couple chapters are gonna be pretty similar to the canon events but as it goes on it'll diverge into a separate plot.





	1. 2Murderous2Mask Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> If anybody knows how to spell grimthewhateverthefuckus please hmu.

Grim’s Mask. An artifact left over from the very beginning of the jedi order. Some say it’s cursed, others say it’s haunted, but most who believe in these kind of things think it flows with the force, that weird brand of ancient mysticism that I especially can’t handle. No matter though, I have to take the case. Because behind the mask and Croesus's body lies a threat painted in blood. “You’re next Juno Steel.” 

A call buzzes through…

“Chipper as ever I see Juno. It looks like you treat your secretary about as well as your friends.”

Sasha Wire. Sorry  _ Agent  _ Sasha Wire. She’d left Mars nearly two decades ago to join Dark Matters, a ‘peace keeping’ agency that tried to fill the hole the jedi left in the galaxy. They may not rely on cheesy street magic to keep the ‘peace’ but that doesn’t mean they’re any more effective than the jedi were all those decades ago.

“What’s with the long face Sasha? Regretting not staying away longer?”

“Can’t I just be concerned with your safety Juno?”

“Nope.”

“Fair enough. Have you heard of the death mask of grimthosuses?” 

“I guess we're talking about business now, then- hold on  _ Grim’s mask? _ You gotta be kidding me Sasha! Don’t tell me Dark Matters goes for urban legends and hokey ghost stories.”

“Dark Matters’ predecessor is one of those hokey urban legends Juno so forgive us for lending them some professional courtesy.”

“Fine. Grim’s mask then. Undisturbed ancient jedi tomb gets discovered over by Olympus Mons during the filming of a Kanagawa primetime special, Croesus Kanagawa films a big expose, destroys a thousand dollars worth of ancient jedi artifacts until he opens the burial chamber of an ancient jedi master. He finds the death mask there and the carvings on the wall say something about  _ who cares.” _

“We do Juno. And you probably should too. The carvings surrounding Grim’s mask state that grimthoWHATEVER earned eternal rest and that the mask is to be left undisturbed or the force projection of GrimmICANTSPELL will rise again and take vengeance.”

“When do we get to the part about the man hand hook car door that's my favorite part.”

“Take this seriously Juno, urban legend or no someone's after your life.” 

“That's good, I've been looking for a nice low stakes case.” 

“...I thought you might say that.”

“What?”

“Case. Not everyone looks at a death threat and sees a job opportunity Juno. Dark Matters is also willing to offer you protecti-”

“I’ll pass.”

“Well regardless it's certainly fortunate ur willing to take this case, we thought it might be a conflict of interest having you on this but the Kanagawa family requested you specifically.” 

“Like this isn’t going to backfire on me.”

“Don’t worry, an agent will be there soon with the details.” 

“Oh no, this day just keeps getting better. I’m not being followed around by some jerk in a suit all day Sasha.”

“Then perhaps you can talk him out of the suit. But his assistance is not up for debate, his name is Rex glass. I've never met him but his record is spotless and he specializes in issues of this variety.”

“Murder?” I ask hopefully.

“The force actually. He’s very knowledgeable of jedi lore and tradition.” 

“WHAT?” 

“Goodbye Juno.”

Figures. I get stuck with a guy who believes in ‘the force’ as the jedi called back when they were still kicking. Anybody nutty enough to believe in moving things with their mind is nobody I’m interested in dealing with. So I spin a few laser cartridges into my blaster and am about to step through my door to avoid him when I hear a voice in the waiting room and it sure as hell ain’t Rita, though he sure seems to be charming her. I swallow the lump in my throat and look to the window. It isn’t so high up I guess and I have yet to be injured from a fall. I’m halfway through and working up the nerve to jump when he opens my office door.      

“Ah Detective Steel how lovely to meet you at last! Are you… trying to climb out the window?”

“I’d say I was succeeding.” 

“Well. I heard they do things differently on Mars but this is a surprise. You’ll have to show me your customs detective, is there room in that window for two?” 

His face was lean but soft with a cherub smile and a fox’s teeth. He looked like he was happy to see me and would be just as happy to kill me if push came to shove. It wasn’t an unpleasant look, all things considered.

I sighed “Agent Glass?”

“Only to my mother detective-” his teeth were sharp and catlike as he grinned like we were sharing a inside joke “-please, call me Rex.”

“Yeah I think I’ll pass. Rita! Rita?”

“Oh I wouldn’t bother calling for her detective. She’s been taken care of.”

“Rita?! You better not have laid a finger on her you- 

“I’ve done nothing of the sort detective.”

Rita walked in giggling like mad.

“I just found the right way to talk to her. There’s a right way to talk to everybody, here’s to hoping we find ours soon. How about over dinner?”

“Actually I’m in a bit of a rush. Some ghost wants me dead or something.”

“That doesn’t sound like it scares you much.”

“That’s because it doesn’t honestly.”

“Maybe you’ve been poorly informed then. You see according to a jedi holocron salvaged in the-”

“I never put much stock in jedi myths.”

“Really? You know the order was around not that long ago. It’s only been 50-60 years since it’s fall. And didn’t you hear all that fuss about Luke Skywalker?”

“Never met the guy. He sounds like a charlatan more than anything else. You ready to get in the car?”

“I’m always ready. Unfortunately I am not force sensitive myself, if I was perhaps I could have shown you a few moves to quell your doubts. As it is I could show you a few other moves but none to absolve you of your disbelief.”

_ “What’s that supposed to mean?”  _

*************************************************************************

The conversation with Cassie was a bust but that’s a relief more than anything else. Out of all the Kanagawas Cassie is the one I’d least like to put behind bars. Currently me and Rex are creeping through a hallway and the maniac seems disappointed that it’s not haunted.

“You don't really believe in all that force stuff do you?”

“I believe in things bigger than us. In things beyond our comprehension. The universe is full of mysteries Juno. Where we go when we die? Why do some objects seems to bring luck or misery wherever they go? And what strange force causes two strangers to become… closer?” 

“No mystery to that last one Rex, I hear you can buy it by the bottle as long as you have a valid ID on you.”

Rex laughs and it;s as intoxicating as the drink I just referenced. “What has you so cranky?”

“I hear there's a name for it but I’ve never asked. Psychiatrists give me the creeps.”

“Really now, I want to work with you Juno but to do so you'll have to cooperate.” 

I sigh deeply. “The last time i saw the Kanagawas i got into some trouble and they've had it out for me ever since. I’m afraid this might be a trap.”

“Well let me alleviate those fears detective, this is definitely a trap.”

“Hey would you look at that, my fears just up and disappeared.”

Rex’s response was cut off by a low growl.

“Do those noises sound like they’re getting closer? Dammit! There's nowhere to hide!”

“I wouldn't be so sure of that, if I recall correctly there should be a door…. Here!”  A section of the wall swings open under his fingertips.

_ “What the?” _

“That was close.”

“Mind telling me where that door came from? Did you magic it out of the wall like some kind of goddamned jedi?”

“Oh but detective I thought you didn’t believe in ‘magic.’ Like I told you earlier, I’m not capable of using the force, and even if I was it doesn’t just create doors. I read the floorplan like anybody else.”

“Hmph.”

A short chase from the cameraman later found me and Rex ties together in some of the world’s most inconvenient chairs.


	2. 2Murderous2Mask Part2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright I know this chapter and the last are very similar to the actual podcast but going forward I'm going to diverge more from canon. Partly cause I don't have the time to relisten and type out fucking everything but mostly so its actually, you know, an au.

Someone who gets chained up as often as I do learns to prepare. I untie the thread that secures my plasma blade box cutter to my coat and switch it on. It hums to life and I push it against the chain.

“Stay still.” I mutter. I can’t see a damn thing and when Rex flinches from away from my box cutter he knocks it right out of my hands. 

“Can you reach that cutter you just dropped?”

“Sure if you don’t mind wearing the blades above us as a hat.”

“Well, I would have prefered not to do this but, if you can reach into my pocket I have a lightsaber hidden away in there.”

“How the hell did you fit a lightsaber in your pocket? And where would you even get one in the first place?”

“A magician never reveals his secrets Juno, just be careful when going through my pockets, who knows what else you might find.”

“I would hope you’d know.” I mumble as I start searching. He wasn’t kidding, Rex must hide half his house in those pockets. I find the lightsaber in between two halves of a sandwich and beneath what felt like broken glass. “Rex, how do you work this thing?”

“Just give it here Juno and lean as far forward as you can get.”

I do as told and as soon as I’m out of the way I feel an electric heat hum to life between our hands, severing the chains. “Would have been nice to know about this before.” I grumble at him as we fly out of our chairs.

“You said you had it under control.” I turn to him and nearly lose my breath at the sight of his sharp elegant face illuminated by the lightsaber’s mysterious purple glow.

“You escaped!? No! Cameramen get them!” Several of the creatures begun to descend upon us.

“You take that one, I’ll get these two!” I yell at him and face the charging monstrosities.

“No need detective-” he jumps in my way and flicks his wrist, the two cameramen charging toward me drop and I can barely see the cuts that grace their necks- “I’ve been training to use a lightsaber since my youth.” He spins the purple blade and impales the third one, the saber slides through its chest like it’s cutting through butter.  

“Thought you said you weren’t a jedi Rex.” Another cameraman charges up to us and I throw it into the throne of spinning blades and run to get my blaster.

“Oh detective,” he calls from across the room where he’s fighting off several more of the abominations, “The force isn’t a prerequisite for swordsmanship.” 

When I go to grab my blaster there’s already another cameraman there. Deftly dodging the creature I grab my blaster and shoot it right through the lense. I turn to shoot the two remaining cameramen Rex is sparing with. It catches him off guard, and he turns to look at me with wide eyes.  

“Well! That was really something! A laser straight through both of their lenses. And you barely had to look at them!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m amazing. You haven’t seen anything like it. I’ve heard it all before. You’re welcome. Now we just have to torch the footage Cecil has backed up in that arm of his.”

“Speaking of which- _ he’s getting away! _ ” We dash after him. I keep my blaster ready and Rex keeps that purple saber of his unsheathed, not that it would have done anything good against Cecil’s spike arm. It was headed straight towards Rex’s face and he could have chopped it off, but that would have done nothing for the momentum. I raise my arm to shield him. I always was a good catch. 

 

*************************************************************************

 

The case is closed and Cassie is in jail and I have a handsome man in this small apartment of mine but I can’t bring myself to do anything but drink. It was hard putting Cassie away in hoosegow. And it’s made harder still by the fact that the other responsible party was sitting across the couch from me. 

He took the needles out from under the doors.

He pretended not to know what they were.

He wasn’t curious when Cassie said the case had already been opened.

I chugged my drink a little quicker, even if he didn’t intend for his actions to end in murder there’s no denying that it did. And that Cassie just got punished for it. I didn’t know what to think. I liked Rex. I wanted to trust him. But how could I? I didn’t even know the man’s name for crying out loud. 

“You-” a sigh escaped me, “-you don’t have to go Rex.”

He chuckled, his eyes warm and unclouded by guilt. Why did I want to trust this man?

“Listen to me. You don’t have to do this you know that right?”

“Oh. But of course I do! The galaxy is much bigger than the two of us Juno. My work- my life! I belong out there. I have to leave! ...But life can wait one night. 

Juno.

Come here.” 

He pulled me toward him and as futile and wrong as it was I followed. 

Lips like silk.

Strong hands pulling on my coat.

It was the kind of kiss that feels like it could last the rest of your life.

Until it’s over.

And you know you got as much as you deserved.

“Rex…”

“Juno.”

“Has anybody ever told you” -I snapped the handcuffs on his wrists- “ _ you’re under arrest. _ ”


	3. Prince Of Mars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trying to speed things up a bit and skip things that aren't significantly different. I know it's still pretty similar to the podcast rn but I've got some shit planned for later chapters.

That smell. I knew I had smelled it before. A cologne that had lingered in my apartment for weeks. A smell like another world. And then a shadow in the red light of the left hall. A man. Long legs, arms, fingers. I couldn’t see his face but I could imagine it, that sweet smile, cutting teeth, then the light faded and he was gone. 

“Juno-” Alessandra touches my arm “-did you see something?”

“No.” I shake her off. “Nothing. Let’s split up, I’ll go this way.”

“Split up? But that’s what they want us to do!”

“Do you want to let another person die?”

“Of course not but-”

“Then I’ll see you back here in twenty minutes.”

“Juno!”

“Ok twenty _ -five _ . Just be careful. You're good at that.”

“Juno- twenty minutes. If you're even a second late-”

“Don’t tell me. I want it to be a surprise. Good luck Alessandra. Stay safe.”

“You too.” 

I can hear the confusion in her voice, can taste it on my tongue but it doesn’t matter anymore. I could almost hear Nureyev’s laughter as I raced down the hallway. The only door at the end of that hall opened onto a staircase, it was very very dark down there. I ran down, I didn't want to live forever. My comms went out as soon as i stepped foot through the door and by all means I was alone.

But it didn't feel like I was alone. In the dim red light I saw another staircase, then another below that. The noise kept getting louder, the light brighter, I swear i could hear the running footsteps ahead of me, I swear I could smell his cologne, I could swear I could hear his voice,  his laughter. But when I finally hit the bottom floor the smell was gone, the footsteps were gone, the laughter was gone, and I was alone. It didn’t make sense. I put my hand to my head and could feel a migraine forming, from across the room I heard it. I heard  _ him _ .  

“You don’t know how to find me, my dear detective.” 

My head shot up but no matter which direction I looked the room was empty, I was alone, but I could still hear his voice.

“But maybe you know someone who can.” The room melted away before my eyes and I found myself surrounded by flashing lights, hypnotic music, heavy perfumed scents.

“The.... Vixen Valley? Didn’t know you were into those kinda places Nureyev.” 

His laugh was haunting as it faded away with the rest of the hallucination or whatever it was and I was left in the room alone. Well, not quite alone. Before I had time to ponder my possible mental breakdown I heard a voice from the staircase.

“What was that? Did you hear that? Hands over your head or else i'll shoot!” 

I had to hide. I crept back and felt a door open behind me. 

“There's someone down there!”

“Calm down, the door’s probably just on the fritz.”

I fell back and the door closed. The footsteps were getting louder and the guards clearly weren't giving up. They'd be on me any second now and then they'd have the pill. Whoever ran this place had already killed two people to get this pill and i didn't think they'd hesitate to kill a third. I don't know why they wanted this thing but i knew i couldn't let them get it. I threw it on the ground and stomped.

“There’s someone in there!” 

My boot couldn’t even scratch the pill.

“I’m calling in backup!”

I shot the damn thing for good measure.

“Intruder in the south room closet!”

It didn’t crack.

“They’re armed and dangerous!”

There was only one thing left to try. I lifted the pill to my lips. Looking into that ruby red crystal I thought back to Saffron Pharmacy’s research into the pill. It was a sith legend, a supplement supposedly, to increase a force user’s ability without training. The jedi banned it, claiming the sensory overload could drive a person mad, sometimes even to death. But I wasn’t a jedi, I couldn’t use the force, had no psychic ability. Hell I still wasn’t even convinced the force existed. There’s nothing in my head to supplement. Maybe it wouldn’t kill me. And even if it did... 

“Bottoms up.” I whispered as I tipped the pill back. 

I didn’t black out. When you black out you feel nothing. I. Felt. Everything. The guards outside the door, the ones rushing down the hall, the minute tremblings of the ground beneath their feet, the forces of motion as dictated by simple physics, the forces of motion as could be dictated by me, the possibilities, the futures, stretching out before me, the maintenance droids in the building next door, the arguments happening down the street, Allessandra, the drunks at the end of the block, my car outside humming with electricity,  _ Peter Nureyev _ , a speeder racing down the adjacent street.

And then a presence. Not in the room. Not even on this side of the building. But a presence nonetheless. And this one stood out from the others. It wasn’t passively existing, letting me observe it. It was reaching out to me, taking my mind by its theoretical hands and shaking it out of anger. A voice, cool, and slithery, and reptilian. 

“Oh Juno Steel. You took my pill didn’t you. What made you do it? Curiosity? Did you take it just to spite me? But how could you? You don’t even know who I am. And here’s something that’s going to drive you wild Juno. You never will know who I am. It will happen in the dark. It will be simple. And you will never know who you crossed. For a stubborn detective like you that’s going to be the worst part isn’t it? Dying without knowing a thing. Maybe I’ll do it tomorrow. Maybe I’ll do it here. But nobody stays in debt to me. You may have swallowed the pill but I will take what I want, If I have to suck it out of your veins myself I will have what I want! Goodbye Juno Steel. Enjoy the rest of your miserable life.” 

The voice faded, and without it’s shielding presence, the madness of the world returned. 

 

*************************************************************************

 

“Mister Steel. Hello? Are you asleep or are you just hoping I’m going to leave?”

I cracked open eyes and found myself face to face with a light pink  [ Twi’lek ](http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Twi%27lek/Legends) , eyes bright with her lekku draped over her shoulders. 

“Does it make a difference Rita?”

“I can’t wait much longer! I just had to update you on that  _ business. _ ”

“Never say that again.”

“Hey! You look pretty good today! The doctors finally get all of that Sith poison out a you?”

“Can’t say for sure but they sure took most of me out of me.”   

“I’ll say! You look good boss. Trim.”

“Never say that again either.”

“I just tell it like it is Mister Steel. Speaking of trim…”

After some conversation she finally got around to letting me know Alessandra was here. 

“Hi there Steel.”

“Alessandra?”

“Play nice you two!” Rita shut the door behind her, but not before wiggling her eyebrows at me and glancing pointedly at Alessandra, all without the woman in question noticing.

“I… uh… never got to a chance to thank you.”

“I know. And I collect interest. Better make it good.”

“Thanks,” I mumble into the pillows.

“If all your payments are that size you’re going to be in debt for a long long time.”

“Really. I’d be paste without you, and that’s a best case scenario.”

“Don’t get genuine on me. It’s not a good look on you. So. The doctors say you took that pill.”

“That’s between me and my kidneys.”

“You- You didn’t hear anything? Did you?” 

“Didn’t think a little mind reading would bother you.”

_ “I’m not ashamed of anything I’ve done. _ I’d just like to be in control of how it gets out. But… you didn’t hear anything that’s going to get between us… did you?”

“No. No I didn’t. Didn’t hear anything at all actually. Legend says you have to be force sensitive for it to work. Which I sure as hell am not.” 

If only I could believe it. The things I heard while on that pill, the things that I had felt, were like nothing I’d ever experienced before. If you had caffeinated my fucking midichlorians you might have gotten a similar result. And as much as I want to say it was a drug induced hallucination, that whatever I had experienced back there was the pill’s fault and the pill’s fault alone, the vision of Nureyev and Vallis Vicky had happened before I even thought about shoving that crystallized craziness down my throat. 

I had to talk to Vicky. Hell knows how but she knows where Nureyev is. And Nureyev knows enough about the force to tell me how to get it to leave me the hell alone. As for that reason - _ and that reason alone _ \- I had to find him.


	4. The Midnight Fox

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god there was a transcript for this one I've been saved a headache and a half.  
> Also I skipped day that wouldnt die cause I felt like itd be pretty much the same.

“So. Talk.” Vicky put the phone down and folded her arms over her desk, all four of them. ( [ Codru-Ji ](http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Codru-Ji) )

“I was wondering if you could tell me—” 

“Oh, y’know what, I’ve been meanin t’ ask you: how’s your friend? The one that made it into Dark Matters? I heard you two caused a lot of trouble over in Oldtown yesterday.”

Vicky can be infuriating that way, always interrupting just to let you know who exactly has control over the conversation. I tried again. “Yeah, but I was—”

“Mixed up with Dark Matters, getting into fights with the cops… you been busy lately, ain’t you, Steel?”

“Ooh, you know things you shouldn’t. That’s a neat parlor trick, Vick, but it was neater the first three hundred times.” I always assumed Vicky spread rumors about being force sensitive for show. Now I had to wonder...

She laughed, it only sounded a little forced. “Hey, a club like mine is in the business ‘a flauntin. If you want subtlety this place ain’t really your bag.”

“I’m looking for a guy, an art thief. Sold a hell of an interesting jedi death mask a while back, and maybe even a sith pill last week.”  

“Who is he?”

“Don’t know. I’m planning to ask him.”

“This is all awfully odd for you Juno. I thought you didn’t believe in the old religions. And yet here you are asking for a Jedi. Or maybe even a Sith.”

“He’s not either of those things. And I never said I believed in any of that bullshit. I just need to ask him a few goddamned questions.”

“Hmm.” She leaned closer to me. Her bottom two arms remained folded on the desk but the upper ones reached up and cupped my cheeks.

“Hey!” I tried to pull back but her grip was like iron. She tilted my face this way and that and then held it forward, her eyes boring into mine. “What’s the big idea?”

She finally released my face and sat back, folding her top arms behind her head and her bottom ones crossed over her chest. “You’re a liar Juno Steel.”

“Wha-?!”

“But I’ll help you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah I can find your guy. But… funny thing is, Steel, his contact info just slipped my mind!”

“Of course it did.” I sighed, this was gonna be a long night. “Well, what’s it gonna cost to make it slip back, Vick?”

“Well… Now you mention it, I am under a little pressure lately. Yeah, that’s it: stress, cloudin’ me over. You take care’a the stress, then maybe…”

 

*************************************************************************

  
“Hello Juno. It’s been a while.”

“Nureyev.” I nodded to him. Vicky said she’d get me in touch with him but I didn’t realize it would be this soon. Or at my apartment.

“You called. Have you rethought my offer? Are you ready to travel the galaxy with me?” His grin is sharp and smirking but his eyes are soft and hopeful. I walk a couple paces to where he’s sitting and lean over him, jabbing a finger into his chest. 

“No. I called you because you’re an expert on the force. Or so you claimed.”

He looks genuinely confused and I feel a small spark of satisfaction. “I do know a thing or two about the force detective. But I’m not the only one. You called _ me _ all this way to educate you on old faiths detective? I thought you didn’t believe.”

“Yeah well swallowing a goddamned magic pill does wonders.”

“You swallowed a… what? Juno what are you talking about?”

“Don’t pretend like you weren’t there.  _ I saw you. I heard you. _ ”

“Juno, I have no idea what you're talking about.”

“The Sith pill! Or whatever the hell that thing was!”

“A Si-  _ Juno! _ You swallowed a Sith pill?!”

“Yeah! And you know what? I’ve been seeing shit, and hearing shit, and moving shit around without touching it ever since. And I’ve got no goddamned control! How the hell am I supposed to live with this?!” I jabbed my finger into his chest a few more times for good measure. “You’re the expert on this force shit. Tell me how to make it stop!”

When I finally stop to catch my breath he’s staring up at me, looking like I had just slapped him in the face and that he didn’t particularly mind it.

“Juno.” He murmurs and grasps my hands. I try to pull back but he merely stands up with me. “You swallowed a Sith pill…” I nodded “and it worked?” I nodded again, somehow his gaze made it hard to form sentences.

“You’re force sensitive.”

“Apparently.”

“And you swallowed a Sith pill. This is incredible. How did it feel? What did it do to you?”

“It hurt like hell and now I have to put all my effort into not accidently throwing furniture.”

_ “Increible!  _ It actually works!”

“Yeah, well, can you make it stop working?”

“Stop worki- why in the galaxy would you want to do that?”

“Because  _ I don’t want this!  _ I never asked for this- this- hokey pokey magic bullshit! It’s done nothing but make my life harder!”

“Well, that’s because you're untrained.”

“I don’t want to be trained I want it to stop.”

“Stop?  _ Juno. You have the force.  _ People would die for that power. People have died for that power.”

“Yeah. And maybe I don’t want to be one of them!”

Nureyev just stared at me for a moment, I could barely determine the emotions running across his face. He looked a little sad, and a little worried. I don’t know when but somehow Nureyev isn’t just pulling at my hands anymore, our hands are entwined with one another.

“You won’t be Juno. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

“I-”

“But there’s no way to undo what the pill has done to you. Legend says it brings forth power that already existed inside of you not create more. Nothing could remove the midichlorians from your blood Juno.”

“But how can I? I can’t just live like this. I’m a walking time bomb, one stray irrational thought, and I could seriously hurt someone.”

“You’ll have to learn control Juno.”

“...will you teach me?” His eyes flick to the ground, the first break in eye contact in a long while. 

“I wish I could, but no. I’m not force sensitive Juno. You’ll have to learn from somebody that is.”

“But who? All the jedi died out decades ago, and Luke Skywalker has been missing for years.”

“I don’t know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And fucking finally we diverge from the canon events. Also I'm basically picking alien races out for aesthetic not their cultural features or whatever so if ur clicking on the links all u have to do is look at the photo and thats it and even thats not necessary really. Plot's gonna get pretty different from here on out guys.


	5. Rita Joins The Help Juno Find A Master Squad And Basically Owns Everyone Else's Computer Skills

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Look I tried posting a comic part to this but there were several problems:  
> a) this is the first time I've ever tried inserting a photo here and I couldn't figure out how to make it turn so it's sideways  
> b) i was too lazy to make it digital so its a picture of the shit drawing I did in class on lined paper  
> c) I literally only put effort into drawing Rita cause she's a twi'lek and I like drawing twi'leks  
> d) sorry

The next few days were tense. Neither of them could think of a Jedi master to train Juno. Skywalker was still missing, his rumored protegees were too. I almost considered asking Vicky if she really was force sensitive but her favors always came at a price and if she wasn’t… well it wouldn’t do any good to have the first order think there was an up and coming Jedi on mars.

“Well who trained you to use that lightsaber?” I gestured at Nureyev. “Maybe they would know a thing or two.”

“I can assure you, that the person you are referring to wouldn't be any help,” his lips pressed into a thin line. “Even if they weren’t six feet under.” He mumbled that last part, I almost didn’t hear him and I sort of wish I didn’t. I never was good with emotions.

“Well, where else are we gonna look? We can’t exactly advertise in Jedi Monthly!” I threw out my hands and the mug on the coffee table went flying across the room, shattering against the wall. “Ah shit! At least it didn’t have any coffee left in it.”

“Whoa boss! What the hell’s going on in here?” The front door opened to reveal Rita, at the same time Nureyev vaulted over the couch in an attempt to hide behind it.

“Did the- _boss I think there’s an intruder behind your couch._ ”

“No! He’s not-! Agh! It’s no use hiding from Rita, you might as well come out and ah- introduce yourself.” The idiot somehow managed to make sliding out from behind a couch look graceful. Rita gasped.

“Ohhhhh I've seen your face before! Let me see. Let me see. You’re not from the bakery down the street, not from the streams… Where have I seen you before???? A B C D E F G….. G... G... G... OH! OH! GLASS! REX GLASS! THE DARK MATTERS AGENT!”

“Good to see you again, Rita was it? I didn’t realise you had such an excellent memory for faces.”

“Yeah, well, I try. Mistah Steel hired me for a reason after all.” She grasps my arms as she says it and smiles up at me. “So… whatcha doing with a Dark Matters agent boss? You didn’t say anything about another case. That’s why i'm here after all! You haven't been to the office in forrrreeever.”

“It’s only been a few days.”

“Exactly! You _never_ take time off boss. This is all super weird for you. And you’ve been acting weird before this too. I thought you mighta been sick, but the last time you got sick I had to lock you in your apartment to get you to stay home. So I decided to check and that’s why I’m here.”

There was an awkward pause as I tried to figure out what to say. As scatterbrained as she was sometimes, Rita was a goddamned genius and I wasn't sure if I could think of a lie to that would convince her. I glanced at Nureyev and our eyes met briefly. He looked as calm as ever but I could feel tension rolling off him in waves. And I mean literally feel it, I could hear brief snippets of his thoughts too. Being recognized, even as an alias, had put him on edge.

“Well? Cat caught your tongue? What’s the case boss? I can help!”  

“It’s a, it’s not a case per se…” I reached up to rub my neck and looked away.

“Ooooh. Are we going” -her voice got low- _“off the books boss?_ ”

“No! And why do you have to say it like that?”

“Oh.” Her eyes were sparkling like mad and I didn’t have to use the force to know what she was going to say next. _“Ohhhhhh Mister Steel.”_

“No! No.” Her smile only grew.

“Ohhhhhhhh. I get it now.”

“No. You. Don’t.”

She giggled like a kid who just stole from a candy store. Nureyev was watching with bemusement. If my ears get any hotter they might just burn off my body.

“ _Ohhhhh Mister Steel._ If you wanted some private time you could have just ask-”

“Stop it!” I stamped my foot on the ground, feeling like a child. Everything left on the coffee table flew out in every direction, crashing into people, and furniture, and walls. “FUCK.”

Peter stood up and took my burning face in his hands. “It’s ok lo- Juno, I’m sure Rita didn’t mean anything by it.” His eyes flickered to Rita who was spinning around the room, eyes wide and lekku swinging out around her. “You need to remain calm, regain control.”

“I’m fine!” I jerked out of his grip and took a step back. Pinching the bridge of my forehead I took a deep breath.

“Oh. That’s what this is really about isn’t it?” For the first time in possibly years, Rita’s voice was hushed. I stared at her, not knowing quite what to say. “I knew you were affected by that pill but.. I didn't think it’d become a problem.”

“Wha- you knew?!”

“Well, yeah I mean, you’ve been breaking all your cups for weeks now.”

“What? But? You never said anything?”

“Just figured there wasn't anything to say. Sure the office is running low on mugs but other than that I didn’t think it changed anything?”

“Is it obvious? Do you think people noticed?”

“Nahhhhh. Not unless you spend as much with anyone else as you do with me. After all you’ve had pretty good control for someone who just took a sith pill.”

“I guess there’s no reason to dance around it,”  Nureyev cut in, “the real reason I’m here is to help find Juno someone to train under. I’m no Jedi but I am an expert on their culture. I’ve been trying to help him keep his powers under wraps until we can find him a real master.”

“Oh this is just like in the streams! Who’s gonna be? You got any leads? You gonna train under Luke Skywalker? Or- OH! YODA’S GHOST!”

“Rita, there’s no such thing as ghosts.” I interrupted.

“Sure there is boss! I was watching this documentary on the Skywalkers, and how Luke got his start in the rebellion and-”

“Just because it was on tv doesn’t mean it’s true!”

“Actually she’s right Juno, there have been records of possible ways to contact the dead. The Jedi order themselves never perfected the method, but after the fall of the order many people reported encounters.”

“Well I still can’t train under a ghost.”

“Well what about Luke?”

“Luke’s been missing for years!”

“Well who else is there?”

“That,” Nureyev clarified, “is the problem. With the threat of the first order hanging over their heads, no one will admit to being in touch with the force, if they’re even aware of it. We’re still trying to track someone down.”

“I can help! Don’t worry Mister Steel! We’ll find you a master in no time!” She ploped down in the middle of my living room, foregoing the couch altogether in favor of spreading her stuff out on the floor. Her bag, despite not looking that big must be bottomless with the amount of stuff she pulled out of it including a shiny new piece of technology I had yet to see.

“What’s that?” I pointed at the gizmo in Rita’s hands.

“Oh, I got the latest computer! Nice ain’t it?”

“That’s…. A computer?”

“What…? What else would it be?”

“It’s just, so thin. Where do you fit the floppy disk?” Rita’s and Nureyev’s stares would have felt piercing enough even if I hadn’t been able to feel the mortification running across their skin.

“I- Boss, please tell me you’re kidding.”

“Uhmm.” Nureyev was doing a wonderful job at keeping his face blank, it’s too bad I could feel the suppressed laughter bubbling under the surface. “Sure, just kidding.”

 

~COMPUTER HACKER STYLE MONTAGE~

“OOH! BOSS! I GOT SOMETHING!”

I startled up from what was totally not a dose and tried to push myself upright. Nureyev’s legs had pinned me down when he sprawled out on the couch and my lap. The man in question shot up, clearly having fallen asleep himself, I just managed to dodge his legs as they swung towards my face and managed to catch sight of his face, wild eyes and glasses just about falling off.

“What is it Rita?” I caught Nureyev’s glasses before they fell to the floor and handed them back to him.

“You found something?” He took his glasses back with a smile.

“Yeah! You see I was lookin up all the historical documents about the Rebellion and it started reminding me of those stream specials awhile back, you know the ones with Harrisynn Falcoyn-”

“Rita, the point.”

“But this is the point Mr. Steel! Anyways I remembered that in some of the earliest stages of the rebellion the rebels got help from a mysterious agent called Fulcrum! And this Fulcrum person, most sources agree that they were a gray jedi that had survived order 66. However they dropped off the map years ago, so I did some digging and I found some old transmissions from an abandoned rebel file that was stuck in the backlog server of a-”

_“Rita.”_

“Sorry boss! Anyway’s from the transmissions I was able to trace voice maps and realized it was a perfect match for one jedi drop out- Ahsoka Tano!” Rita turned her computer screen to me to reveal [a profile picture of some togruta kid](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahsoka_Tano), barely out of her teens.

“That’s a child.”

“I know! She was a padawan, but left the order at the age of seventeen, before she could take the oaths and all that. By the time order 66 and the rebellion rolled around she would have been old enough to fulfill the role of agent Fulcrum.”

“Is she still alive today?”

“It’s hard to say boss, Fulcrum hasn’t seen much activity in decades, and she would be in her 80s by now anyways, but there’s also no conclusive proof of her death. I think it’s worth a shot!”

“Not to rain on your parade Rita- “Nureyev cut in “-but how would we even find her? If she’s still alive that is?”

“That’s where you come in, super secret fake Dark Matters agent.”

“Oh?”

“There’s a guy living out of his hotel room in the Oasis Casino Resort.”

“Brock Engstrom you mean?”

“Oh, so you’ve heard of him.”

“Who hasn’t in my line of work?”

“Well I wouldn’t know that, but word on the conspiracy theory boards in that Engstrom is in possession of old Rebel contact info, and if you want to find someone he’s the man to go to.”

“Wait wait wait. Who’s Brock Engstrom?”

“Don’t worry Juno, it looks like I’ll get to introduce you. Rita, could you book me and Juno a room at the Oasis? We’ve got work to do.”

“Ooooh! Do you want me to come too?”

“No. Rita darling, you’re demonstrated your skill on the computer screen and we’re going to need you to find more files and cover for us well we’re gone. However if we could all get some burner comms it would be easier to stay in touch.”

“Gotcha covered Mr. Glass!”

“Hey! Isn’t anybody going to ask me what I think about this?”

“Very well, what do you think about this Juno?”

They both turned to look at me, excited and expectant all at once. It was nerve wracking. Suddenly I was so much less sure of what I wanted to say.

“Well uhhh, it just seems like a lot of trouble to go through just so I can stop breaking all my coffee cups. And after all this Tano person probably won’t even be on Mars.”

“Well of course not. The odds of her being on the same planet is extremely small.”

“Well then what does it matter? If I can’t even go to her? Why bother looking?”

“Of course you can go to her.” A strange look crossed Nureyev's face. “Juno. You do know you can leave Mars right?”

“But the shuttle tickets for wherever the hell Ahsoka even is is going to be enormous!”

“Juno you know who you’re talking to right?”

“I can’t just leave my business!”

“I can take care of shop well you’re gone boss!”

“This is ridiculous! Chasing after some Jedi master just to learn a few tricks!”

“Actually boss, she left before achieving the title of master…”

“It’s not just a few tricks Juno, the force can affect your entire way of life! You have to learn to control it before it controls you!”

“And besides boss, you’ve _just got_ to train under her, you’ve got a whole jedi legacy to uphold!”

“What? No I don’t! I’m no Jedi!”

“And no one’s saying you have to be Juno.” Nureyev took one of my hands again. “But if you keep going like this people will start to notice what you can do, and the attention you’ll attract will be far from good. Learn to control it and you can go back to your life, and with a couple extra skills to help you solve a case!”

“Come on boss! It’s gonna be so cool! Let’s at least find out where this Tano person is first, and then you can decide if you want to go!”

“That sounds like a plan to me. Juno, what do you say?”

I sighed and dragged a hand down my face. “Alright, let’s find out if she’s even around anymore. But I’m not agreeing to anything yet. Got it?”

“Got it.”

“Ohmygoshboss! This is gonna be so cool!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't watch Rebels and only know what I've seen on tumblr. So sorry if any of the info on here is wrong but it's also not particularly relevant. Idk u can tell me if I fucked up if you want, hell I might even end up using the new info if it's cool.  
> (And yes I know she supposedly died but ya know what, fuck the canon, shes my togruta child and i love her)


	6. The Train To Nowhere But There's No Train And They're Definitely Going Somewhere

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok I guess we're back to episode rehashes with this one. I'll be glad when I can just focus on more original AU stuff instead of figuring out how to convert a chapter. Major shout out to the transcripts page that's being developed, it's saving my ass with these chapters.  
> Also we can assume there's no secret note doodle paranoia in this version given that Miasma didn't bring Nureyev back to Peter. Don't worry though. Juno is still a ball of anxiety and paranoia and it will manifest in different ways in future chapters (hopefully).

“Shall we speed things up a bit, Engstrom?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

A bell rang and they started shuffling their overkill of cards. Questions were tossed across the table like poker chips and answers were won and lost like creds. The game was indecipherably to me but the goal was clear.

Nureyev lost. “Your win. I’m Outer Rim, originally. Brahma.”

He lost again. “Your win. The lightsaber is a relic of the original order. I stole it off a rogue jedi in his old age.”

“Your win. I was trained in swordsmanship from a young age, but no military experience.”

Nureyev was losing. Bad. He didn’t give in, though. He’d ask his questions. He’d lose. And over and over again they’d return to the same old battleground…

“How can I contact Fulcrum?”

“What is your name?”

“Pass.”

Valencia stood behind us. Something about her made me nervous. Her boss was winning but her movements were jittery, impatient: she was smoking a cigarette out of one of those long, fancy holders, but she’d chewed the hell out of her end of it. She was watching the game pretty intently, her eyes flicking from card to card, deck to deck. She looked like an expert – which made it funny that she didn’t know the first goddamn thing about it.

It took a second for that thought to sink in. I didn’t know how it got there, and it barely made sense. She’d set the cards up; she was watching like a hawk. But the actual rules? She knew as much about Rangian Street Poker as I did.

I was sure of it. Jedi mind magic sure came in handy sometimes. If I had the right kind of control, maybe I could have plucked Fulcrum’s information right out of Engstrom’s goddamned head. 

 

************************************************************************

Valencia was clearing the table. I knew she must be communicating with Engstrom somehow, there was no way he wasn’t cheating. The method somewhere on her, but I didn’t know _ where.  _ My eyes met hers, I focused all my nervous energy, all my fear, I looked into her eyes and tried my best to see past them, into her head. I’d heard Nureyev’s and Rita’s thoughts on occasion but it was an ability that came and went with no warning. I’d never actively tried to reach someone’s thoughts before and I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to. I strained a little harder, reached a little farther.

And then.

I saw it.

It hit me all at once, a picture clearer than thought: her cigarette. In my head, a diagram. A cutaway of her cigarette: a hidden button by her teeth, shortwave transmitter, Morse Code translation drive. I knew how it was powered, what parts it took to build it. I even heard a few words of an argument they’d had about how it needed to make smoke, about how the chips couldn’t take that kind of heat, about how they’d have to find a way to make it work.

“See something you like Detective? You’ve been staring at me for a while.”

“Yeah. Mind if I bum a smoke?”

“For the last time, hon, I — oof!”

“What the hell do you think you’re doing!” Engstrom looked like he was about to be sick.

“Something really, really satisfying.”

“Put down that cigarette!”

“Gladly.”

 

************************************************************************

 

My head was swimming after that game, we headed back to our hotel room. I wish I could tell if it had been Rita or Nureyev that decided on booking the honeymoon suite. Engstrom had reluctantly handed us what looked like a case file. I haven’t looked through it yet but Nureyev said it contained everything he needed to find Fulcrum, Tano, or whoever this ancient monk was supposed to be. 

Nureyev transmitted the information to Rita and opened a holocall to her. 

“Come on, Rita, pick up, pick up…” I couldn’t shake my anxiety, I still didn’t know where we were going but chances said Not Mars. I still didn’t know if I wanted to do this.

“Hiiiiiiii!!” 

“Hey Rita.”

“Hello Rita. I trust you got the file?”

“Sure did Rex! Look’s like Tano’s in Shili!”

“Do we have any more specifics? That’s a whole planet we’ll have to search.”

“Shili? That’s all the way in the Ehosiq sector!”

“It’s not that far all things considered, 40 hour flight maybe.”

_ “40 whole hours?” _

“I’m working on it Rex but there doesn’t seem to be anything to narrow down her location any farther. The fact that we could find a location at all is remarkable.”

“Yes considering how a transient a post order 66 Jedi would have to be it’s quite amazing she was able to settle on a single planet.”

_ “40 hours on a tin can!” _

“Wow Rex! How’dya know how a post whatever Jedi would behave?”

“The nature of my work is similar.”

_ “40 hours in space!” _

Finally he turned his attention back on me. “Yes Juno, 40 full hours, on a tin can, in space. Are you quite done?”

“Don’t worry boss, the flight’ll be over before you know it! Just think of like a school trip to phobos! But way more fun because instead of learning boring historical moon facts you get to learn cool exciting Jedi facts!”

“Mmmmmmh, yeah, no. Still a 40 hour flight.”

“Juno. Are you still comfortable with this? I know you’re not exactly thrilled with this whole Jedi thing, but we’ve come all this way. And once you actually start to see what it’s like being a Jedi… I think you might like it.”

“Jedi history books tell you all that?”

He laughed nervously, it occurred to me that most Jedi books or artifacts had probably been purged along with the order itself. How did Nureyev know so much? What wasn’t he telling me?

“Come on Mister Steel! This’ll be good for you! And good for business! Think about how many criminals you could catch with some fancy new superpowers!”

“Heh. Alright. Let’s do this.”

“Perfect! I’ve got the flight schedule’s right here! Rex, should I just use the Rose identities to buy the tickets too?”

“No… I’ll take care of this. Thank you so much for the assistance Rita!”

“No problem! This is the most fun I’ve had since Franny did an exorcism on my bathtub! Keep me posted you two!”

“Franny did what?”

Rita hung up. Fuck, I guess I was actually doing this thing. Nureyev sat down at the coffee table with some papers in hand. Forging us some new identities probably. Why was he going so far to help me? We were virtually strangers after all, I’ve only interacted with him for 96 hours and didn’t even know his real name for the first 24. I didn’t realize I was staring until he looked up at me.

“You should get some sleep Juno, we’ll have to catch a transport tomorrow morning.”

“What about you? You don’t exactly look ready for bed.” He smiled softly, a look I’ve never seen on his face before.

“Forgeries never take me long anymore, I’ll be done soon.” 

What neither of us mentioned was that the room only had one bed. Call me an idiot but maybe if I didn’t mention it, it’ll stop being a problem. If you could even really cal this a problem. And maybe it wouldn't be if I knew how I stood with Nureyev, if I understood him enough to trust him with what I felt for him. 

“Why are you doing this?”

“We can’t exactly leave planet with compromised identities Juno, I know you’re new to thi-”

“No. I mean- why are you helping me? Forging identities, risking your real one, buying transport tickets to Shili. It’s a lot of work for someone you barely know.”

The question catches him off guard, I can tell in the shape of his lips and the set of his shoulders, a master thief who isn’t bothering to hide his tells from me.

“Quite frankly Juno, I’m not sure. I suppose a part of me has always had a weakness for the old religion, it’s exciting to be directly involved in its rebirth, even if it’s only in part. And another part of me is excited to be doing that with you. I know we haven’t known each other long but… the force works in mysterious ways, and if it’s going to keep bringing me back to a certain petulant detective that I know and  _ -tolerate- _ then, well, I’m certainly not complaining.”

I don’t know how to answer that statement so I didn’t. I got up, tried to ignore my burning face, and got ready for bed.

“Night Nureyev.” 

“Goodnight Juno.”


	7. Obi Juan Whoever The Fuck You Are

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh man. Really, this scene should have taken longer to get too but I just couldn't wait.

‘1111... 1112... 1113…’ A voice I’ve never heard before invades my dreams. 

“What the hell?” I mumble, I’d gone to sleep in a hotel bed but now I found myself pacing the Oasis’s halls. 

‘Carts loaded, set to kill.’ Dread pools in me, that thought wasn’t mine, it wasn’t even my voice, what kind of nightmare…?

“Kill?..... Nureyev?”  _ Oh no.  _ “Nureyev!” I tried to shout but in typical nightmare fashion I had no control of my voice or limbs. I’d fallen asleep before he had finished the forgeries maybe he was still up. Maybe it was just a nightmare.

‘Make it quick. Make it quiet.’ The voice thought again.  _ I have to wake up. _ I see my hand reach out, but it’s not my hand, it opens our hotel room door with a spare key card. The room is dark and the carpet muffles my -their- footsteps. I can see two bodies in the bed, mine is sprawled embarrassingly close to Nureyev.  

‘Sleeping.’ The assassin laughs in their mind as they cock their pistol. I have to. WAKE. UP.

Suddenly I’m back in my own body, but her thoughts stick to me like tar.

‘Goodnight you lousy P.I., son of a -” 

They never got the chance to finish that thought. My blaster made sure of that.

“Juno? What in the hell was that?” Nureyev shoots up besides me, so close I feel his arm graze mine.

“Sure wasn’t the tooth fairy. Hit the light.” He clicked the light on and I got a look at his eyes, wild and panicked, I was panting, probably didn’t look much better.

“Do you know this person, Juno?”

“No, but with a gun that size I don’t think she was coming by to ask for a cup of sugar.”

“Then who -”

“Let’s just get the hell out of here, alright?”

There was a knock at the door.

“I take it you didn’t order room service.” We threw on our clothes as quickly as possible.

“Excuse me, Mr. Rose? Is everything alright in there? We thought we heard gunfire.”

“Could just be a hotel employee.” I muttered doubtfully.

“Oh, yes! And we’ll politely explain that we thought an assassin-skin rug would really complete the room’s decor.”

The knocking got a little more insistent.

“Mr. Rose, open this door, please. We wouldn’t wanna have to force it.”

Nureyev grabbed his bag. “The window. Now.”

“So, got an escape plan?”

“Four. Wouldn’t be much of a burglar if I didn’t. Now come along, down the ladder.”

Nureyev led me through a maze of back ways and ventilation systems, even down a trash shoot at one point.

“There! Here at last, Detective. The garage.”

“Took us long enough… You’ve gotta be kidding me. After all that, you brought us to the wrong garage?”

“Don’t be ridiculous, I never get lost.”

“This is the V.I.P. garage! I didn’t park here.”

“Did I ever say anything about your car? I don’t believe so. We’ll find a much more effective transport here.”

“Nothing wrong with my car.”

“Do you really want to show up to a spaceport with a fake ID and a traceable license plate? Besides, the inspection sticker on yours is three years out of date.”

“I’m busy, alright?”

“It’s a death trap, Juno, and you really ought to get a new one.”

“Oh, what do you care how old my death trap is?”

We sped to the nearest spaceport in some fancy criminal car of Engstrom’s. Halfway there Nureyev threw some documents at me and declared it my fake identity of the day. 

“Veronica Lake? How do you come up with these ridiculous names?”

“It’s a talent.” He dodged through traffic effortlessly. “I also tend to go through the names of ancient old earth celebrities as inspiration.”

“What? What if someone recognizes it?”

“They won’t, these people and their reputations have both been dead for centuries. Aha! The spaceport! It’s a shame to have to ditch the Ruby… Do you think Rita could-”

“You are _ not _ making my secretary pick up a stolen car.”

“I was only going to ask her if she’s ok with it!”

“No! Engstrom’s on the warpath! It’s too dangerous!”

Nureyev sighed and stroked the steering wheel. “I suppose you’re right. It really is a shame though.”

The spaceport looked even bigger on the inside. Handing over fake documents was nerve wracking but they went through the system without a hitch. And I was infinitely glad Nureyev had warned me to leave any and all weapons in the car, it took hours to get through security alone. Once we finally got through security we were greeted with what looked like a capitalist themepark. There were stores lining every hall each boasting the latest technology, magazines, massages, $10 coffees. I almost lost Nureyev in the sea of people more than once. It was a little overwhelming.

I ended up gripping his hand as he led me through the maze of shops and people, it was a little embarrassing but at least it kept up the married persona that he’d set up for us  _ again, _ it was also the only thing keeping me from getting lost.

“Jesus Nur- uhh _ Alan!  _ We’ve been walking for nearly half an hour! Where the hell is our gate?”

“Almost there Veronica darling, this _ is _ the largest spaceport on Mars you know.”

When we finally got to it my eyes were instantly drawn to the thick glass window displaying the spaceship before us. It was huge and infinitely complicated looking, I could feel a spiral of anxiety curl in my stomach knowing I was going to have to board that thing. We sat in the waiting area, as far from the other patrons as possible, which wasn’t very far at all. Two seats away a togruta woman and her human wife fussed over the children in their laps. There was a lack of privacy but the deafening roar a thousands of voices would drown out their conversation if they whispered. I slid closer to Nureyev, nearly pressed against him I whispered.

“You still haven’t told me the plan.”  Nureyev leaned closer to me, any onlookers would assume we were just another married couple instead of a thief and a jedi. 

“This is a flight not a heist dear. We take this shuttle to the overlay on Triton where we conveniently slip away in the crowd, switch out our identities for new ones and get on a wholly different ship headed to Expansion Rim, there we’ll stop off on a small relatively unknown planet, switch our documents out again and head to Shili from there.”

“That seems a little excesive don’t you think.”

“It’s a small price to pay for privacy.”

“And all this only takes 40 hours?”

“Weeeeeeeell.”

“ _ Nureyev. _ ” I make sure to hiss as quietly as I can.

“It’s 40 hours for a direct flight on a high speed ship. This might take 3 to 4 days.”

“ _ Days? _ ” I glanced back at the hulking spaceship. We were going to be stuck on one of these for days? 

“It’ll be over before you know it darling. And Triton truly is gorgeous this time of year. Think of it as the scenic route.” 

The intercom clciked on. “Flight 42 boarding now.”

“Ah that’s us dear.” He stood up and took his bag before holding a hand out to me. “Let’s go find our seats.”

I grabbed my own tiny bag and ignored his hand entirely, standing on my own. “Don’t you think you should have told me about this change in flight plans?” 

“It never was changed. I made these plans last night.”

“You said 40 hours.”

“That was before I started thinking about security. I’m sorry Juno but I fail to see why this is such a big deal. Come on now, everyone’s starting to board.” 

He grabbed my hand and pulled me along. I took a few steps until I saw the heavy metal of the airlock door as it swirled open with deadly finality. I dug my heels in, stopping us in our tracks.

“What now?” He turned to look at me but I wasn’t looking at him, I couldn’t take my eyes off the space where the metal of the ship met the carpet floors of the spaceport.

“Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.”

He stepped a little closer, cutting off my line of sight. I looked up to his face, at the look of confusion he was giving me. “Juno,” he whispered, “you’re not… afraid of flying are you?”

“UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH”

“I- I promise you won’t even notice after we take off. I booked first class, the seats are made so they’re perfect to sleep in.”

“I… uh… that’s not-”

“Just think of it as, what did Rita say, a class trip to Phobos?”

“I never went on any field trips.”

“What? Rita made it sound like it was standard.”

“Sure if your mom bothers paying for your ticket.”

“Have you…. Ever been on a spaceship before?”

“Why would I ever need to get on a tin can like that?”

People were giving us odd looks as they stepped around us to get to the ship. I was causing a scene. I knew it. I hated it. I could feel heat rising in my cheeks and my ears. But I couldn’t bring myself to move closer to the contraption that was about to take me light years away from solid ground.

“Darling I promise, it’ll be fine.”

“Says the man who’s been doing this for god knows how long.”

“So I have a little expertise. And I promise you this is completely safe, and painless, once we leave the atmosphere there won’t even be any turbulence.” He took my hand again and tugged me to the airlock. I willed my feet to move. 

“Is everything alright here?” A flight attendant walked up to us.

“Fine. Fine. Everything’s fine.”

“Ahhh Veronica here’s just a little nervous, it’s his first flight.” I glared daggers at him. Traitorous bastard.

“I’m fine.”

“Oh! I can help you with that sir! Patrons with these kinds of concerns are more common than one would think. But I can assure you any concern you might have over the safety of this ship is easily disproven. Do you have any specific concerns? Perhaps I could show you the latest regulation safety report?”

“No no no. It’s fine. I’m fine. I just need to… get on the ship.”

“Are you sure sir? I could also offer you some sleeping pills as long as you don’t have any medical conditions.”

“Aha, no, no. I’m fine.” I stepped through the airlock as quickly as possible, just to get the flight attendant to go away.

“If you’re sure Veronica dear.” Nureyev followed me, I realized with some embarrassment I was still gripping his hand.

“Yep N- Alan. It’s all good. Let’s get this show on the road.” I marched off through the little metal hallway.

“Well if you have any concerns just ask a flight attendant on board.” The attendant called behind us. I tried to wave them off.

“I never realised embarrassment was such a motivator for you dear.”

“Don’t rub it in.”

“Oh I won’t. Our seats should be this way.” He led me further into the ship. I would have let go of his hand but frankly it was the only thing keeping me from making a dash for the door. 

 

********************************************************************************************************

 

I woke up hours later to some turbulence, not even able to remember drifting off. The ship shook a little more violently.

“Hh- what? What’s going on?” I shot up in my seat.

“Nothing dear, just landing.” Nureyev set down a magazine and looked over to me. “The flight wasn’t so bad was it?”

It wasn’t but like hell was I going to admit it. “Well, I suppose we survived.”

“I suppose we did.”

The station on Triton wasn’t quite as massive or busy as the one in Hyperion City but it was still impressive. Looking out the large glass windows gave a view of the sprawling city below. “The city of Aegae,” Nureyev informed me, ever the tour guide, “it’s the capital here.” Beyond the city a large blue curve cut through the dark horizon. It took me a moment to realize it was Neptune, it was so incomprehensibly large that at this perspective, I could only barely recognize it as a planet. Nureyev towed me around the space station, mentioning something about a restaurant before continuing to spout facts the moon, the city, and the planet beyond. I wondered how many times he’s been here- and what crimes he committed in that sparkling city below. 

We were eating overpriced cafe sandwiches when it happened. I looked over the quiet emptiness of the station and wondered vaguely to myself what time it even was here. It was impossible to tell this far from the sun but it felt like midnight. 

“Hey Nur- Ala- what am I even supposed to ca-”

An explosion rattled the station. Nureyev stood up like a bolt of lightning, tugging me up with him.

_ “What the hell was that?”  _

“I don’t particularly want to find out.” Before he even finished his sentence he was sprinting across the station, dragging me behind him. In the background I heard the clank of metal against metal and the whine of blaster shots. 

I could almost see the exit when we were cut off by a line of battle droids. I cursed, feeling for a blaster I didn’t have with me. Damn spaceport security. 

“Why the hell are these even here?” I yelled over at Nureyev.

“Wish I knew.” The unmistakable sound of a lightsaber powering up was accompanied by a soft purple glow.

“How the hell’d you even get that past security?” 

“A magician never reveals his tricks dear.”

Nureyev sliced off a few of the droid’s heads before they could take a shot, one of the remaining ones fired a blast and I pulled him to the side- hard. The shot missed him by inches.

He sliced the last one is half and we made a break for it, only to be cut off by another of droids. Before we either of us could make a move a streak of blue and yellow shot up from behind the droids. It soared up impossibly high before dropping into the droids ranks, there was another whirl of blue and yellow, and a spattering of battle droid parts. The only way I could even tell what was going on was the powerful mechanical hum, just like that of Nureyev’s saber, that wavered through the air, screeching as the glowing yellow streaks melted metal on impact and deflecting blaster shots. 

It was over in under a minute. Standing in the epicenter of warped metal was a togruta woman, about my age, her skin was the color of an earth sky, her montrals were white with stripes of blue as deep as the planet behind her and eyes to match. Her arms were bare and muscular, and she held a yellow lightsaber in each hand. The stern look on her face had me gearing up for a fight, one that I would surely lose.

“Who are you?” She said it with more authority than I’ve ever wielded in my life. 

“We could ask the same of you.” Nureyev held his own saber in front of us. Her eyes narrowed in on it.

“How did you get that? And don’t you dare tell me you built it.”

“That’s none of your business. Now step aside. We don’t want any trouble.”

“Wait wait wait wait wait.” I held my hands out in front of me. “We’re looking for someone, maybe you can help us.”

She was suspicious, I could tell, but didn’t try to interrupt me.

“We’re looking for an old jedi master, goes by Ashoka Tano, or Fulcrum maybe. She’s a togruta, like you.”

The change was instant. Her eyes widened and she marched towards me. Nureyev tried to get in front of her but she yanked up her hand and despite being several feet away from touching him he flew across the room.

She stopped, her faces inches from mine, sabers so close I could feel the heat from them.

“How do you know that name?” 

“Uhhhhh it’s sort of a long story, we stole some old rebellion files. But we need to find her!”

_ “And why-” _ she stepped even closer  _ “-is that.” _

“I’ve been levitating things and overhearing people’s thoughts for weeks now. I need someone to tell me how to get this bullshit under control.”

“These powers don’t just develop overnight.”

“Yeah but I swallowed this sith pill thing and-” 

“Even if this was true, why doesn’t that nerd over there teach you?”

Said nerd was barreling towards us full force. She raised a lightsaber to block him and then kicked his legs out from under him, he jumped to avoid her but she jabbed the blunt end of her lightsaber into his stomach, making him crumple to the floor.

“Hey! Don’t hurt him!” I lept over his collapsed body and looked him over, he was winded clearly, but still trying to get up, his lightsaber was knocked out of reach. I stood back up. “If I had a blaster right now you’d have hell to pay. I don’t care if you're Ashoka, Luke, or Obi Juan whoever the fuck, you don’t get to do that to him.” She stepped closer. I threw my hand out to his lightsaber, it flew to my hand. I held it in front of me defensively and wished to dear god I knew how to turn it on.

The togruta woman sighed. The yellow blades slid back into the hilt of her saber and she clipped them back to her belt. “I’m sorry. I see you're not lying about your abilities, but that still doesn’t make you trustworthy. My troops are just about finished cleaning up this little conflict. Why don’t we talk.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man I wish I knew how to add pictures cause I have so many to share. I've got a drawing of our new togruta friend as well as pictures of how her's and Peter's lightsabers look. Maybe I'll post them to my tumblr, I made a new one a couple days ago specifically as a TPP fanblog, you can request fics through it if you want!  
>  https://junosteelprivateyeball.tumblr.com/


	8. Not a Real Chapter: Brief Announcement

Hey so I've had a lot of ideas for this story and I'm not abandoning the concept any time soon but I haven't been all that happy with how I've been writing this particular fic so far. I tried today kinda rewriting the first chapter and I'm much happier with it than this fic so I think I'm going to be rewriting the whole thing. This version will still be up soon at <http://archiveofourown.org/works/11248209>


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